Ahmedabad, June 1: The Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) clinched the IPL 2026 title, defeating Gujarat Titans by five wickets at the Narendra Modi Cricket Stadium on Sunday. Following this victory, RCB’s standout bowler Bhuvneshwar Kumar expressed that he would gladly forgo the Purple Cap for the trophy.
Bhuvneshwar stated, “The trophy is what matters most. I would give up the Purple Cap for it. This season has been great. We had a lot of planning beforehand. Taking wickets boosts your confidence. Previous victories give you the assurance needed for big matches. We performed our best, and that’s what we needed.”
In the season, Bhuvneshwar took 28 wickets, finishing second in the wicket-takers list, just behind GT’s Kagiso Rabada, who had 29 wickets but played one more match.
Devdutt Padikkal, a key batsman for RCB, shared, “This experience has been incredible. Batting with this entire team has been special. When you have such great players around you, it pushes you to improve. Our bowlers executed their plans meticulously. I’ve been part of the team’s strategies in recent days, and their execution on the field has been remarkable. When wickets fell, Venkatesh asked if I was nervous, but with a player like Virat Kohli batting, there’s no need to worry. His performance has been outstanding, and his hunger for runs is incredible. Winning the trophy has been a long-standing desire, and I’m glad I completed this season without any injuries.”
Jitesh Sharma remarked, “Mo Babar mentioned that we are not defending the title; we are aggressively pursuing it. Our mindset was not about defending. Credit goes to the management for how they supported us, especially when I wasn’t performing well. This builds a lot of confidence. You know they will back you, and you want to deliver for them. We were strong, but we focused on one match at a time, without thinking about the opponents. We just stuck to our process. Hopefully, we will secure our third title as well.”
Josh Hazlewood added, “This is truly fantastic. Last year, we had to wait a long time for our first win. In almost every match we played, Bhuvi took early wickets, which is great. I believe the franchise has built the team beautifully. The support staff is also excellent. Creating such a culture is challenging when teams change every three years.”
In the match, after losing the toss, GT batted first, scoring 155 runs for eight wickets. RCB chased down the target, scoring 161 runs for five wickets in 18 overs, thanks to Virat Kohli’s unbeaten 75 runs, securing the IPL 2026 trophy. This marks RCB’s second consecutive title.
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